#witchy guide

Well, it's about time I brought them up once again, in their own post. This guide may be on the lengthy side, but it's here to explain what they are and how to begin working with them.

What the hell is a house spirit?

House spirits come from all different cultures and folklore. Known as, you guessed it, guardians of the home. They protect the house itself, the land around it (they get along with the land spirit(s) most of the time), and they also protect the family if treated right. A home certainly doesn't feel like one without these presiding spirits helping. In fact it gives the home a life of it's own.

What do they look like? Are there types?

Across many cultures, there are these spirits and the folklore varies for each. In my tribe, we consider them to usually be little dwarves or goblins that must be appeased, otherwise they will cause bad luck or even resort to curses. Regular offerings are required. Then there are the land spirits, which is a whole other topic. If given regular offerings and respect, we believe that they will not only generate good luck and events for us, but protect us and help with our daily lives. For the witches of the tribe, they will often assist in rituals and spells. That all being said, this has carried over into my personal beliefs. Many cultures describe house spirits assisting with the same things and if they are displeased, bad occurrences following. As far as looks go, it depends on the folklore surrounding your area and your cultural background(s). You may believe in one or two types or an entire spectrum of house spirits from the realm of the fair folk. You could have one house spirit or twelve. It's entirely up to your home. In some cultures, there are door spirits (yes, that guard the doors) and ones that work in the kitchen, among others for different functions of the home.

Okay so, I live in an apartment building. Can I still work with them?

Yes. When I used to live in apartments, I found it was an either/or situation regarding how many were there. Some buildings have only a few that roam around, sometimes only one that protects the entire building, or there may be multiple hanging out in one apartment. Most complexes have multiple however. And then for the lucky buildings that have one for each apartment...those are nice. I've included a short offering ritual at the end of this post, which you can use to ask questions about whatever you wish to know, including how many there are in the building.

What kind of offerings do they like?

Milk, honey, bread, and herbs are a safe bet. They especially like bread baked by you, as they see it as a labor of love and that your energy is in there. Taking time to tend to the garden and taking care of your property & home in general are things they like to see. Don't leave the house a huge mess, as many prefer a tidy atmosphere. Not an offering per say, but important to mention nonetheless.

What should I put on their altar?

I keep my altar for them in the kitchen, as it is in a place that is undisturbed and can't be torn up by my land shark (aka, my dog). I also feel that most of the house spirits I have worked with in my life enjoy hanging out in this area of the home. They seem to like assisting in kitchen magic and cooking in general and the warmth of the stove. You may also want to include a small area near the front door if you believe that there are separate spirits for there. I'd recommend a shelf, as it won't take up as much space in the entryway.

Okay, back on track. Plants (if the space gets enough light), a cauldron, candles, offering bowls, a chalice, glass, or mug of some sort. A special spoon to stir the drinks or potions with. Decorative pieces from nature. Things you craft by hand.

How can I begin working with them?

Anytime, in reality. However, you do have to develop an actual relationship with them. This can take time and the more you speak to them, give offerings, and invite them in as you cook or clean, the more they will be willing to help with your spellwork, wards, and healing. Try the introduction ritual I've included. See what happens. Document it. Try again another time the following week. And just...keep going. Make sure that they know you haven't forgotten about them by leaving a small nightly glass of milk out before you head to bed. It doesn't have to be filled to the rim (hey, cost of living is ridiculous right now). It can be a splash with a squirt of honey added. Or a sprinkle of herbs on their bowl. Or maybe a small helping of what you whipped up for dinner. Point is to show them that you acknowledge and respect their presence. That will be the biggest component. Do the ritual once a week until you start seeing signs of contact. Once you do, make your own ritual with them. Incorporate them into your daily life. Ask them to help with blessing your cooking. Ask them to make sure your wards are in tact. Ask the door spirit to purify the energy of anyone that walks in & make bad people resist coming by. Start seeing if they'd like to sit in on a ritual, if you feel comfortable with that idea. Ask for a blessing when you clean the house & to assist you in removing all the bad energy.

Brief introductory ritual

To introduce yourself to your house spirits, I recommend sitting in your kitchen. If you consider your hearth to be the living room, you can choose to do it there. Make sure to bring offerings with that you feel will be applicable. Freshly baked bread (from your own hands) and some milk with honey stirred in would make a wonderful first treat. I usually introduce myself in a new home by bringing these treats to the location of choice, and start by speaking my intention aloud which goes something like:

"Spirits of the home,

Guardians and Protectors of this dwelling,

Please come sit with me and enjoy these offerings.

I wish to have a working relationship where we can honor, respect, and help each other."

I usually spend about ten-twenty minutes meditating after this is spoken aloud. Sometimes you will feel a strong presence. This is the time I take to set up my kitchen altar as well. If there is a place that I am able to create a mini-altar by the front door, I do so there for the door spirits. The land spirits get their own little thing out in the backyard. I've found in the many places I've lived, they almost always work together and some house spirits spend quite some time out there too!

a beginner’s guide to chaos magick. simply put, chaos magick is built upon the idea that magick works because the practitioner believes in it.

I usually don’t see any guides about the phases of the Moon and how they affect our magick, so I thought I’d share mine.

Yule is also a celebration of the birth of the Sun King and nature’s renewal. We practice sympathetic magick by lighting fires or candles to encourage the sun to grow stronger.  

This is a time of new beginnings both physically and spiritually, the wheel of the year has made a complete circle. The darkest night of winter is a good time for self-examination and discovering the “seeds” of  spiritual growth or hindrance which are lying dormant within us. 

The Winter Solstice is the turning point in the natural cycle of the year, this darkest night in all the year is followed by a day that will dawn just a little earlier!

So, what exactly is Yule?

Yule takes place on the day of the winter solstice, around December 21 in the northern hemisphere (below the equator, the winter solstice falls around June 21). On that day (or close to it), an amazing thing happens in the sky. The earth's axis tilts away from the sun in the Northern Hemisphere, and the sun reaches its greatest distance from the equatorial plane.

Many cultures have winter festivals that are in fact celebrations of light.

In addition to Christmas, there's Hanukkah with its brightly lit menorahs, Kwanzaa candles, and any number of other holidays.  As a festival of the Sun, the most important part of any Yule celebration is light -- candles, bonfires, and more.

While it may be mostly Pagans who celebrate the Yule holiday today, nearly all cultures and faiths have held some sort of winter solstice celebration or festival. Because of the theme of endless birth, life, death, and rebirth, the time of the solstice is often associated with deity and other legendary figures. No matter which path you follow, chances are good that one of your gods or goddesses has a winter solstice connection.

Alcyone (Greek): Alcyone is the Kingfisher goddess. She nests every winter for two weeks, and while she does, the wild seas become calm and peaceful.

Ameratasu (Japan): In feudal Japan, worshipers celebrated the return of Ameratasu, the sun goddess, who slept in a cold, remote cave. When the the other gods woke her with a loud celebration, she looked out of the cave and saw an image of herself in a mirror. The other gods convinced her to emerge from her seclusion and return sunlight to the universe.

Baldur (Norse): Baldur is associated with the legend of the mistletoe. His mother, Frigga, honored Baldur and asked all of nature to promise not to harm him. Unfortunately, in her haste, Frigga overlooked the mistletoe plant, so Loki - the resident trickster - took advantage of the opportunity and fooled Baldur's blind twin, Hodr, into killing him with a spear made of mistletoe. Baldur was later restored to life.

Bona Dea (Roman): This fertility goddess was worshiped in a secret temple on the Aventine hill in Rome, and only women were permitted to attend her rites. Her annual festival was held early in December.

Cailleach Bheur (Celtic): In Scotland, she is also called Beira, the Queen of Winter. She is the hag aspect of the Triple Goddess, and rules the dark days between Samhain and Beltaine.

Demeter (Greek): Through her daughter, Persephone, Demeter is linked strongly to the changing of the seasons and is often connected to the image of the Dark Mother in winter. When Persephone was abducted by Hades, Demeter's grief caused the earth to die for six months, until her daughter's return.

Dionysus (Greek): A festival called Brumalia was held every December in honor of Dionysus and his fermented grape wine. The event proved so popular that the Romans adopted it as well in their celebrations of Bacchus.

Frau Holle (Norse): Frau Holle appears in many different forms in Scandinavian mythology and legend. She is associated with both the evergreen plants of the Yule season, and with snowfall, which is said to be Frau Holle shaking out her feathery mattresses.

Frigga (Norse): Frigga honored her son, Baldur, by asking all of nature not to harm him, but in her haste overlooked the mistletoe plant. Loki fooled Baldur's blind twin, Hodr, into killing him with a spear made of mistletoe but Odin later restored him to life. As thanks, Frigga declared that mistletoe must be regarded as a plant of love, rather than death.

Hodr (Norse): Hodr, sometimes called Hod, was the twin brother of Baldur, and the Norse god of darkness and winter. He also happened to be blind, and appears a few times in the Norse Skaldic poetry. When he kills his brother, Hodr sets in motion the string of events leading to Ragnarok, the end of the world.

Holly King (British/Celtic): The Holly King is a figure found in British tales and folklore. He is similar to the Green Man, the archetype of the forest. In modern Pagan religion, the Holly King battles the Oak King for supremacy throughout the year. At the winter solstice, the Holly King is defeated.

Horus (Egyptian): Horus was one of the solar deities of the ancient Egyptians. He rose and set every day, and is often associated with Nut, the sky god. Horus later became connected with another sun god, Ra.

La Befana (Italian): This character from Italian folklore is similar to St. Nicholas, in that she flies around delivering candy to well-behaved children in early January. She is depicted as an old woman on a broomstick, wearing a black shawl.

Lord of Misrule (British): The custom of appointing a Lord of Misrule to preside over winter holiday festivities actually has its roots in antiquity, during the Roman week of Saturnalia.

Mithras (Roman): Mithras was celebrated as part of a mystery religion in ancient Rome. He was a god of the sun, who was born around the time of the winter solstice and then experienced a resurrection around the spring equinox.

Odin (Norse): In some legends, Odin bestowed gifts at Yuletide upon his people, riding a magical flying horse across the sky. This legend may have combined with that of St. Nicholas to create the modern Santa Claus.

Saturn (Roman): Every December, the Romans threw a week-long celebration of debauchery and fun, called Saturnalia in honor of their agricultural god, Saturn. Roles were reversed, and slaves became the masters, at least temporarily. This is where the tradition of the Lord of Misrule originated.

Spider Woman (Hopi): Soyal is the Hopi festival of the winter solstice. It honors the Spider Woman and the Hawk Maiden, and celebrates the sun's victory over winter's darkness.

Four thousand years ago, the Ancient Egyptians took the time to celebrate the daily rebirth of Ra, the god of the Sun.

As their culture flourished and spread throughout Mesopotamia, other civilizations decided to get in on the sun-welcoming action. They found that things went really well... until the weather got cooler, and crops began to die. Each year, this cycle of birth, death, and rebirth took place, and they began to realize that every year after a period of cold and darkness, the Sun did indeed return.

In some traditions of Wicca and Paganism, the Yule celebration comes from the Celtic legend of the battle between the young Oak King and the Holly King. The Oak King, representing the light of the new year, tries each year to usurp the old Holly King, who is the symbol of darkness. Re-enactment of the battle is popular in some Wiccan rituals.

What are your thoughts on Yule? How will you celebrate? Reblog and share your thoughts!

Let's discuss a big topic many new witches encounter early on in their journey - how to take a ritual/magical bath. These wonderful cleansing tools are easy, effective, and are accessible to many witches. They can be utilized by witches both in the broom closet and out of it. While this post is long, it's got lots of information, especially for beginners.

The general idea of water cleansing.

What makes ritual baths so great, you may ask? Well, it's an element you immerse yourself into that is not only associated with cleansing, healing, and rejuvenation, but it is also known to get rid of any negative energy hanging around your energetic field. Another plus is that you can add things to it - oils, herbal bags, moon water, the remainder of your simmer pot, etc. You want to bring money in? Cool, add that money oil. Looking for love? Come-to-me oil. Having a rough time with your health? Healing oils and herbs in a tea bag. The opportunities are endless.

Timing (before ritual vs everyday showers)

The next question people ask is if there is a layout they must follow. And the answer is a solid no. This is your practice. All opinions will differ, and you certainly don't have to agree with mine. Do you need to do it before every ritual? No. If that's what makes you feel better, go for it. But timing and certain life events aren't a guarantee it'll happen every time you cast a spell or ritual. Now, you can also do some of these things as a part of your daily shower routine to help cleanse your energy field on days you're not as focused on magic. It's up to you, but I find many people like to do at least a visualization when it comes to the negativity quite literally going down the drain & applying their bath products.

Creating a peaceful environment.

If you're doing a ritual bath, chances are you'll want to create a relaxing atmosphere where you can focus on what's needed at the moment. Light some candles (no, you do not need to light fifty). Add some crystals around the tub, because fuck it, they look pretty and if you feel they relax you or change your vibration, why not? An aromatherapy diffuser is nice to have in the bathroom. Epsom salts help your body physically speaking to soak in and they purify you. You like relaxing music? Cool, that helps ease your thoughts and bring you into a meditative state faster.

Using your soap/body wash as a cleansing agent.

A way you can utilize your time in the shower is by using your soap as a way to cleanse the negative energy off of your body. If you wash your face in the shower, let it be representative of your emotions being purged. As the soap goes down the drain, it leaves, forever. Making your own body wash or soaps may be a nice hobby that allows you to really integrate magic into your showers. You can put thought into exactly what herbs and scents go in there, some put a quartz crystal in the center to keep it charged!

Washing your hair.

This follows a similar concept as above. Hair, in many cultures, is viewed as an extension of the nervous system, acting like an antenna to the universe. In my culture, we believe our black hair offers us protection and better intuition. It not only is a signifier for beauty when it comes to choosing a partner, but is a sign that the person is connected to the ancestors and our gods. Every culture has different context, stories, and meanings behind theirs. Some people like to use natural hair products for this reason, and you can also make your own if you want to infuse your magic into them. Getting a comb or brush made out of natural material (such as wood) can become a meditative practice. Repeating affirmations with each brush stroke about how you wish for your hair to look, such as it becoming more shiny or long, is a way to implement a routine with it and make it special. Try rinsing with moon water to get a special sheen!

Bath salts.

Bath salts are all the rage for a reason. Buy yourself some epsom salts, in a decent quantity for making medium to big sized batches. And then it's quite simple, you'll mix herbs in there! It's fun to create your own blends, just be certain that these herbs are safe for you to soak with. If you're picking these herbs yourself (and it's not from a home grown garden), check in with what the exact species is as you'd be surprised at how easily a poisonous plant looks like exactly what you are intending to grab. You can add a few drops of essential oils into the bath water before you get in, or add it to the salt blend in small quantities.

Epsom salts are amazing for muscle tension and general aches and pains. Especially if you're active in the gym and trying to speed up your recovery time. Aside from that, if you've got chronic pain they won't take it away by any means, but you may find a little relief from it and you'd be able to do a spiritual cleanse in the meantime.

Herbal tea bags.

These are something you'll see often. You also will see people dump herbs and flowers in their tub, which is aesthetically pleasing, but damn that is one mess to clean up! Easiest way to prevent that is by putting it all in a tea bag and you'll have much less to worry about when you're done, let alone herbs getting in areas you'd rather not have them in.

As far as this goes though, think of it like soaking in a giant tub of tea if you do just herbs. It's wonderful and relaxing, not to mention it smells amazing. As mentioned in the last section, make sure that you are using herbs safe for your body/skin contact. Check for allergies (you could do this with a simple hand or foot soak) to be 100% safe.

A brief note on uncrossing.

Uncrossing baths are not only wonderful ways to remove bad luck, a hex, or curse, but something that should be done once or twice a year. The length depends, but generally it's 3, 7, 9, or 13 days. I do mine 1-2x a year (twice if I detect a hex or curse) and opt for 13 days, as that is the most powerful time frame and I can be sure I've removed anything lingering. This is an entire post that needs to be written and I'll be *eventually* doing one, as I figure it deserves its own in-depth explanation.

Wait, I only have access to a shower!

I get it, genuinely. I've lived in apartments that had tubs and some that didn't. The current house I'm renting has a shower with a tub...but an automatic drain my husband and I can't find a solution for. But hey, at least we're moving soon. On the bright side, that's given me room to experiment and tell you what works.

Add a few drops of essential oil to the shower floor when taking a warm/hot one. It's aroma will carry up with the steam. Of course, there's also the solution of buying a small diffuser for the bathroom itself. Secondly if you like the whole tea bag idea, tie it to your showerhead! The heat will do the same thing. While it's not as powerful, it works. It's still something, which is better than not being able to do it at all. If you want to use epsom salts, do a foot soak. Or some people pour it over their body and head before taking the rest of their shower.

Visualizations.

Oftentimes, you'll hear of people that do meditations and visualizations to cleanse their energy field. They are very simple, which increases its popularity. Taking the pointers from above, add these tricks in. For a bath, after you are done scrubbing your body of negative energy, when it is time to drain the water visualize all of the negative energy going down the drain and no longer being a part of you. For the shower, same concept but more instantaneous. You could even do it periodically, after each step of your shower routine if you wanted.